A Battle with Memories
by ShadowDove87
Summary: It was summer, the last day of school. The first time they met each other. That day a lot was about to change. Not only for her, but for the entire team. Joining Yusuke and the others would be the greatest experience of her life. Not to mention the cat...
1. A New Recruit

ShadowDove87: hey everyone! I'm actually updating again…I'm shocked! ;; Well I can't take all the credit. If it wasn't for my friend Qiruama I probably would be putting up a new story. She and I started writing this together a while ago, so this is not so much my story as _our_ story. We both loved writing it, so I hope you all enjoy it! Please review and tell us what you think. Productive criticism is welcome, but not destructive. Thank you!

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**A Battle With Memories**

**Chapter 1 – A New Recruit**

**Authors: Qiruama and ShadowDove87**

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It was summer, the last day of school. The first time they met each other. Class was almost over when he wandered in, the tall red head, Kuwabara. He could not be considered the smartest, the only thing that occupied his mind was fighting. Fighting and winning against Urameshi Yusuke, which he never did. That day though, a lot was about to change. As Kuwabara looked into the classroom, enquiring about the whereabouts of 'Urameshi', no one answered. No one save for the raven haired girl on the far end of the room. Though she was in the same grade as both Yusuke and Kuwabara she seemed older, somehow more experienced. Her name was Tara and, as she replied, her lips formed into a small smirk.

"I think that girlfriend of his is having her usual 'chat' with him,"

Yusuke's, so called, 'girlfriend' was Keiko. They were not an actual couple, at least not yet. They were complete opposites, making affection rather difficult. He couldn't care about school enough to rub two coins together and she based herself around her education. The clash in personalities made her a very confining partner, something that always caused tension between them.

Kuwabara stared at Tara as though it was the first time he'd ever seen her. No wonder really. She usually didn't actively participate in class and kept to herself most of the time. Taking in her subtle features, he realised he was in love.

"Well, hello…I don't believe we've met. I'm Kuwabara!" he smirked proudly at her, puffing out his chest, making him feel very dashing. He was only scaring her.

"Yeah, I know already," her attention seemed somewhat divided. "I'm used to seeing Urameshi kick your ass all the time," looking back up at him, her green eyes flashed briefly as her smirk returned. She enjoyed teasing people, although that was not something many knew.

Kuwabara, rather surprised by her response, fell silent. He sweatdropped and cleared his throat. "Err….I'll win one day! For sure!" he chirped. It didn't seem like he believed his own words.

Tara only continued smirking, turning back to look out the window, she sighed a little. After a few moments she slowly turned to look back at Kuwabara, having noticed his reflection in the window. Raising an eyebrow at him in question, she wondered if there was any discouraging him. "Hey…why do you want to talk with him anyway? Another fight coming up, hmm?" the change of topic roused a hint of curiosity in her.

Kuwabara looked around the room a little, avoiding Tara's gaze. He half hoped Yusuke would jump out from somewhere. "Eh, no, Botan asked me to get him-.. Err, I mean…" too late. Kuwabara's distracted mind had brought him into trouble again. He slowly turned his head to look at her, sweatdropping and trying to look a mixture of confused and innocent in hopes of making her forget what he'd just said.

"Botan? Botan who?"

"Eh, no one!" he waved his hands about wildly, and it almost looked as though he was trying to wave aside a simple comment. Almost.

The raven haired girl raised an eyebrow as she looked at him. "You know you're a really bad liar, Kuwabara. Why don't you just tell me the truth?" _Botan…Where have I heard that name before…?_

Kuwabara seemed quite nervous now, especially under her inspective gaze. He blinked frequently, his heart rate sky rocketing. "Umm, I think I can hear the teacher call… Bye!" and he was off.

Tara sighed a little and turned to gaze out the window again. He wasn't worth her time and she decided it would be best to just forget about her rather awkward encounter with Kuwabara. As she stared out she did not notice that someone was looking straight back at her, his eyes narrowed.

A little while later, Yusuke wandered slowly back into the classroom, a huge, red, hand mark adorning his left cheek. He frowned and let himself fall, unceremoniously, into a chair. "Dammit, why do girls have to hit that hard all the time?" he kept grumbling to himself, rubbing the still glowing print.

Tara's attention turned from her lookout and to Yusuke. She couldn't help but laugh a little. "Maybe it's because we _are_ stronger than you guys, ne?" she smiled a little at him before shaking her head. "Anyway, Elvis was looking for you,"

Yusuke blinked a little in surprise. It was often that anyone in his class actually paid attention to him, much less responded to one of his remarks. "…Elvis…?" he heard her laugh as she nodded her head.

"Hai, Kuwabara was here not long ago. He said Botan was looking for you,"

Yusuke didn't have an opportunity to exclaim his surprise. Kuwabara marched promptly back into the room, as if on cue, and grabbed Yusuke's arm, dragging him up from his seat. "There you are Urameshi! I've been looking all over for you! Botan has another mission for us!"

Tara looked after them with a wondering gaze. Her curiosity was growing and it was finally starting to get the better of her. Slowly getting to her feet, she went to follow them, being careful not to be seen. Their walk lead her to the roof of the school building wherein she remained hidden in the stairwell, peeking out from behind the door. She couldn't see much, but it was enough. Her eyes caught sight of a blue haired girl, clad in a pink kimono and floating on what seemed to be…an oar…?

"Look Botan, I brought Urameshi!" Kuwabara exclaimed to the hovering girl, who had a huge smile on her lips.

"Yo Botan," Yusuke didn't seem quite so excited to see her. On the contrary, he looked rather annoyed. "What's the problem now? Another stupid demon think he's cool enough to be in the NingenKai?"

Tara narrowed her eyes. Not only did the bright and bubbly girl seem very familiar to her, but how could two idiots like them know about demons?

"Uh," Botan paused, taking a moment to gather her thoughts. "I think it's better if you talk with Koenma about this. I was only sent to pick you guys up," looking the two boys over a moment she started glancing about curiously. "Do either of you know where Hiei and Kurama are?"

Tara stared, not sure if she was hearing everything. Not just anyone could go and talk to the ruler of the Spirit World and a simple human shouldn't even know about him!

"Uh, I think Kurama's in school and who cares about shorty anyway?" Kuwabara looked at his two companions, attempting a convincing look, smirking victoriously after a few moments. Little did he know that the 'shorty' had just appeared right behind him.

Glaring holes into Kuwabara's back, his ruby eyes glowing with loathing and a hint of disgust towards the much taller boy.

Yusuke sighed, putting a hand on his head when he caught sight of the staring contest the two boys were caught in. "Dammit Hiei, you really have to scare us like that?" he smirked a little at the death glare from Hiei and the responding terrified look from Kuwabara. The fire demon suddenly appearing behind him was obviously not what he'd wanted.

"Err…" he started, trying to avoid the venomous stare. "Let's go find Kurama!"

Tara had to move fast. She knew the only way for them to come out was down the stairs, right where she was. Her eyes widened a little when she heard them coming closer. Moving quickly, she tried to get away in time, but it was in vain. The moment she stepped out into the hall, she knew it was too late. The black clad man stood before her and he did not look happy. His eyes narrowed in annoyance and disapproval, watching as she began to back away. He only took another step toward her.

"And where do you think you're going?" his voice was cold, cool, controlled.

Tara was speechless. How the hell had he appeared in front of her like that? He'd been up on the roof with the other three just moments before. A jump like that would mean certain death for any human. Unless of course he was…

At that moment Yusuke and Kuwabara hurried into the corridor. They stopped when seeing Hiei cornering one of the students.

"Who was it Hiei?" the fire demon had mentioned a spy while they were up on the roof, so this must be the convict. Yusuke came to a rather sudden halt when he recognised Tara. She looked at them a little and sighed.

"Hey! That's the girl from before!" Kuwabara exclaimed, almost tripping on the step behind him in shock.

After letting the situation sink in for a moment, Yusuke's expression moulded from shock to mild surprise, raising an eyebrow at his classmate expectantly. "Tara? What are you doing here?" he looked at her in a way he'd never looked at her before…if he had ever looked at her in the first place, that is. He narrowed his eyes in suspicion, still looking somewhat troubled, as though he didn't like the situation.

Hiei stepped forward again, a little closer to her, his eyes still narrowed. "Detective, I believe we have our spy," his blood red eyes flashed and seemed to burn into her soul as he spoke, making her shiver involuntarily.

Tara blinked in surprise, trying to shake off the demon's interrogative glare, turning her attention to Yusuke. "Detective? What is he talking about?"

The questions didn't do anything to reassure him. Frowning a little more he sighed. "Tara, what were you doing up there? How much did you hear?"

She, on the other hand, was rather taken back by the hint of frustration in his voice. Although he tried to act cool like he usually did she could see through the façade. What was he afraid of? There was no way he could be involved in any of _that_, could there? She glanced around the small crowd that had formed in the corridor outside their classroom. Hiei was forever glaring, Yusuke looked troubled and Kuwabara looked more puzzled now than ever before.

"Eh, Urameshi..? She feels funny."

Tara blinked, turning to glare at him. "Sorry, what did you say?" she snapped. There was no way he was going to insult her, although she still didn't know what he meant, but the look on his face didn't mean anything positive, so she had to expect the worst.

Yusuke, not taking his eyes off their, so called, hostage, turned his attention to his friend. "Funny? In what way?"

Kuwabara knit his brows together in frustration as he tried to figure it out himself. "Eh, kinda like Hiei." He blinked a little as he looked at her, squinting as though he was trying to see her through a fog. He just couldn't put his finger on what it was that he was sensing from her. She seemed normal enough, maybe a little like Yusuke, but then again, her energy was, well, different. A hint of demonic maybe.

Yusuke started laughing, ignoring the questioning looks he was receiving from the other three. "Haha, yeah right, and I'm the kind of the Spirit World! Listen Kuwabara, there's no way that girl can be a demon. I've known her my whole life and she's always just been this, like, weird girl, but not a demon!" he kept laughing for a while until Hiei interrupted him.

"I'm sorry to say this detective, but the idiot's right," his gaze, once again, rested on Tara. "We'll get Kurama and take her to the toddler,"

Tara's eyes widened. She looked back and forth between the boys. How could they know? And now this 'toddler'…who was he supposed to be? "Wow…" she slowly back away from them, trying to keep her distance from all three. "Sorry what? No way, I'm not going anywhere! Forget it!" crossing her arms she looked at each with a determined glare. That settled it. There was no way she was just going to go with them. Still, she was troubled by the talk of demons. She continued backing away from them, having convinced herself that, as long as she could see where all three of them were, she would be able to get away. She soon realised she was mistaken though, when Hiei suddenly appeared behind her.

He seemed to look slightly more annoyed and agitated every time he had to make a renewed approach. "As you said, you're not going anywhere," he grab her arm in a firm grip, quickly convincing her that she could not get away.

Tara only gawked a moment before starting to struggle. She'd never taken orders before and she certainly wasn't about to start now. Hiei was faster though and, just as she was about to open her mouth to protest, the world around the blinked out and she found that they stood in an entirely different school building altogether. He had teleported the entire group into an empty classroom, occupied only by a young man with long, red hair. Their sudden change of scenery seemed to be the least of her worries though, as she stared at Hiei, rendered speechless. She could no longer deny it. He was a demon, and a strong one at that.

The young man didn't seem the least bit surprised to see them suddenly appear before him. Smiling pleasantly he approached the motley group. "Oh hey," his smiled wavered for only a brief second when he noticed Tara. "Who's this?" he asked softly.

Yusuke frowned. "A girl Koenma needs to see. Kuwabara and Hiei say she's a demon, but I'm not really sure…" his voice trailed off as he turned to look at her. He sighed after a moment, shaking his head a little before turning his attention back to Kurama. "What do you think?"

Kurama sighed as well, turning his attention to her again. "I'm not sure Yusuke. Identifying demons is not one of my specialities, but if Hiei and Kuwabara both say she's a demon then they're probably right," he smiled again, silently trying to reassure Tara.

She studied him a moment, puzzling over his calm figure. Even his energy was calm. After a few moments, reality hit her like a slap in the face. The shock was easy to read from her expression. She would have _never_ guessed it was _him_. But what was he doing here with _them_?

Botan showed up not long after. She swooped in through the window and hopped off her oar, smiling brightly at them. "Hey again," she started, stopping and blinking a little when she noticed Tara. "Eh…guys? Who's she?"

Hiei made a noise that greatly resembled a growl. "Hnn, someone Koenma needs to see," he found no reason why he had to give any sort of explanation to the blue haired nuisance, whether she worked for the damn toddler or not.

"Oy, Hiei, you could be a little more polite," Kuwabara huffed, crossing his arms. Some people just didn't understand that women had to be treated with respect. Especially pretty women.

Tara only raised an eyebrow. She now understood that this was probably going to be one of the most unpredictable days of her life. She was going to have to prepare herself for one surprise after another. Kuwabara's sudden courage towards Hiei was one of these unexpected surprises. Of course she'd heard of his honour code, who hadn't? She wouldn't have expected that it would make him stupid enough to actually snap at the fire demon though.

Botan sighed, looking sceptically at Tara a moment before turning back to Yusuke. "Alright, if you can say go for her then let's get going," her smile instantly lit up her face again as she fished a pink compact out of her kimono, snapping it open. "Botan here, Koenma sir. I've found the boys and they're ready to see you!"

Tara sweatdropped as she kept looking at Botan, not quite sure what to make of the bubbly girl, almost not noticing the childish voice emitting from the compact. The 'grim reaper' flipped the compact shut again and jumped up onto her oar as a black hole opened before them.

"Koenma's waiting,"

Kurama was the first to walk through the portal.

"Hnn, I'm going through, take care of the girl," Hiei followed close behind, no longer considering it his responsibility to baby-sit Tara.

Of course, Tara made one last ditch effort of getting away from them, but Yusuke was faster. He took her arm and pulled her to his side. "You're not going anywhere," he pushed her towards the portal, giving her no opportunity to argue.

Now on the other side of the portal, she found herself standing in a spacious office. There were no windows. A brown desk was the only piece of furniture and it had been planted in the middle of the room. Cautiously, she began looking around, wondering where the ruler of the Spirit World actually was.

"Kurama tells you have a visitor with you," there it was again, the childish voice she'd heard coming from the compact earlier, but she couldn't find him. Then, out of the blue, a toddler, with a pacifier and all, jumped onto the desk. She only had to look at him a moment before realising who he was. Koenma, ruler of the Spirit World, the son of King Enma. He looked like the brat many apparitions described him as. Pressing her lips firmly together she tried to keep from laughing and failed to hold back a giggle.

Koenma sweatdropped when he looked at Tara, clearly not amused by her reaction. No one seemed to have respect for him nowadays.

"I'm sorry," Tara managed to blurt between laughter. When she'd finally calmed herself, she smiled pleasantly as she looked at the young leader, whose annoyed expression remained firmly in place.

After getting over his well known annoyance that always followed the laughter, he turned his full attention to Tara. It looked as though they were right. "Your signature's interesting," he finally started. "Who are you?"

Tara sighed and took a quick look around the room. She wasn't comfortable simply divulging such information, but it didn't look like she had any other choice. After all, she'd much rather tell them than spend the rest of her life in ReiKai prison or something else along those lines. "My name is Tara and I'm a demon living in the human world," A moment of silence followed her confession, only broken when Yusuke voiced his surprise.

"WHAT?!" it practically looked as though his eyes were about to pop out of his head. "You…you're a demon…? And…you never told me?"

Tara sighed, running her fingers through her hair. All these incessant questions were starting to get on her nerves. "Well of course I didn't tell you. Why should I?"

Yusuke took a deep breath, blinking a few times while he took a moment to regain his footing. She was different in his eyes now. She wasn't the weird, shy girl anymore. She was someone else. A girl he didn't know. "You're…" it was as though he'd been set on repeat, he couldn't utter any other word.

Koenma interrupted his inept stuttering, rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "Hmm…you could be useful for the team," he nodded, having come to a conclusion. "Yep, that settles everything. You're the new member of the team," he smiled at them confidently, as if nothing could possibly be wrong. Now Yusuke's eyes were not the only ones bulging.

Tara stared at the baby in shock. What had he just said? Something about a team, yes, she'd heard that right, but, what was that about becoming a part of it? She didn't like the sound of that at all.

Kuwabara stared at Koenma, flabbergasted. "So you mean you're gonna make her a detective too?" he sounded jealous.

Kurama, standing closes to Koenma, cleared his throat tentatively. "Koenma, you think that is wise? You don't even know the young girl,"

Koenma sighed. "You'll need her for your next mission," he started slowly, moving back to sit in the large armchair behind the desk. "Besides, as a demon living in the NingenKai, she could have reeked havoc long ago, but she never did, did she?" he leaned back in his chair in satisfaction. It wasn't often that he could enjoy such baffled reactions from all four boys.

"You're putting a girl on the team?" Yusuke was the first to recover, his palms slamming down on the desk in obvious disagreement with their leader's decision. "Kuwabara's bad enough, don't you think?"

"Hey!"

"This girl, Tara, will be more useful than Kuwabara," Koenma pointed out, not fazed by Yusuke's outburst.

"Hey!!"

Hiei smirked lightly, enjoying the batting of insults directed at Kuwabara. "Hnn, that would not be very difficult,"

Tara sighed, ignoring the human and the fire demon who were now caught in a heated argument. "Listen, Koenma, I really don't need to be on any team and I'm sure the boys can do way better without me. I really don't have time for this and I really don't wanna be a detective." Her voice was calm, but firm, making it clear that she was not about to take orders from someone not even half her height.

Koenma closed his eyes and sighed. "I'm afraid you have no choice in this matter,"

Tara's expression darkened as she glowered at the baby, who didn't seem to notice her dark mood at all. It was Kurama who interrupted her thoughts.

"What kind of demon are you, Tara?" although he still seemed somewhat concerned about their new recruit, he was calmer now, as though he was gradually adjusting to the idea.

She sighed, forcing herself to calm down a moment before she looked up at him with a small smile. "I'm a thunder demon,"

Kurama only smiled more and nodded. "I could sense that, I just wanted to be sure,"

Tara sweatdropped, now realising he was right. Now that she knew who he was, a demon, she knew perfectly well that he was able to sense something as simple as that, especially if she lost her temper like that. She had to be more careful.

After a while of actually talking her new team, Tara discovered many things. She confirmed that Kurama was the legendary Yoko Kurama, a demon fox of the MaKai. A thief who, shortly after being shot, used his spirit to flee to the Human World to recover his strength. Hiei was the Forbidden Child, the result of a Koorime and a fire demon. She had heard about both demons in the past and remembered her father telling her bedtime stories about them when she was still a young girl. When he was still alive. The comforting memory of her father helped her relax and adjust a little to this entirely new situation. She learned that Kuwabara was actually a normal human who had a heightened spirit awareness. He even showed her his spirit sword, hoping to impress her. The most extraordinary story she heard though, was Yusuke's. His ancestor having been one of the three demon kings changed her whole outlook on him. He wasn't simply a delinquent anymore in her eyes.

Koenma didn't give her a lot of time to get to know her team mates though. There was, after all, a mission he wanted them to complete.

"I'm afraid I can't give you the exact details. We received some information from the Makai," he started and the expression on his face told them it was trouble. He was up on his desk again, pacing back and forth as he spoke. "To be honest, I don't know the details myself. All I can tell you for sure is that a shift in power is threatening the Makai," he stopped walking and started sucking on his pacifier instead.

Yusuke sighed. "Oh great! Don't those demons ever take a break?"

Tara looked at him in time to see him roll his eyes in annoyance. "Yusuke, demons don't take breaks, what did you expect?"

"The source we've received this information from had agreed to meet you and give you the details," the team looked at him.

"So, we're going to the MaKai?" Kuwabara asked slowly.

Koenma nodded. "That's what it looks like,"

Yusuke started smirking a little at the idea. "Heh, it's been a while since I've been there. It's going to be fun to see it again," he leaned back in his seat, putting his hands behind his head.

Tara raised an eyebrow at the detective. "Fun? Yusuke, have you even heard what this is about? How can you say a mission like this is going to be fun?"

Yusuke looked at her a moment before starting to smirk more. "Hey, what's the matter Tara? You must have been there before, right? What? Scared?"

The young thunder demon narrowed her eyes. Not only was he playing a dangerous game in challenging her temper, but he actually believed that she was scared and that was not the point at all. "As a matter of fact, Urameshi Yusuke, I _have_ been to the MaKai and no, I'm _not_ scared of going back," she snapped irritably.

Kurama cleared his throat, breaking the tension building between the two teens. "So," he started slowly. "How do we know who we need to talk to?" his question made even Yusuke stop laughing and look up.

"I'm having one of the ogres prepare a portal that leads to the demon city she's agreed to meet you in. Just look for a neko youkai,"

Kuwabara's eyes bulged, but this time from glee rather than shock. "It's a cat demon?" everyone seemed to take a small step away from him. They could practically feel his energy level rising. Kuwabara was the kind of human who was obsessed with cats, women and love.

The portal opened in the far corner of the room and the small team of five walked through, one after the other. Stepping into the barren, asphalt street, they looked around. They were clearly standing in the rundown section of a flourishing city. They could hear the noise of a market not too far away, but the lane they stood in was completely empty.

"So," Yusuke started, looking around. "Where do we find this neko girl?"

Hiei narrowed his eyes as he started walking, the others slowly following him. "Hnn, it looks like we have to find her,"

Tara gazed around as well. Being back in the MaKai had not been one of the things on her mind when she'd gotten out of bed that morning. The energy of the four boys around her made her nervous. She'd moved to NingenKai to get away from demons and apparitions, not to join forces with them.

The city was immense. No matter how far they walked, all they saw were the tall, grey buildings towering over them. It seemed endless. Odder yet, was that they did not encounter a single soul while exploring the metropolis, even though the noise of chatter was never far away. Not a single creature, and especially no demon cat. Occupied by their own thoughts, none of them realised that they were actually being followed.

Her brown eyes seemed to glow in the darkness, making it easy for her to navigate through the shadows the buildings cast upon each other. Her eyes almost seemed to glow gold. She had been following them for some time now, observing them. Although it was unlikely that anyone else knew of this place, she could never be too sure. Her eyes were set on the tall teenager with too much gel in his hair. He seemed to fit the description of the Spirit Detective that Koenma had given her, but it was in her nature to be cautious. You could never be too sure.

Kuwabara, pulling up the rear, seemed especially jumpy. His brows were knit together, face pale. He didn't look too well. "Umm, guys?" he didn't seem to trust his own voice. "I really don't think I like this place. It gives me the tickles!"

Yusuke, who hadn't sensed anything, looked over his shoulder at Kuwabara with a smirk. "Even spiders give you the tickles Kuwabara,"

Kuwabara gave an involuntary shudder. "But they're gross…! With all their little legs and eyes…"

Tara sighed and shook her head, trying to ignore him. She was still irritated with Koenma for forcing her to become part of this inept team of his. "Have you ever tried to look at yourself in the mirror? You're gross yourself, so shut up,"

Both boys stared at her for a moment before Yusuke burst out in fits of laughter. Kuwabara crossed his arms and pouted indignantly, looking considerably offended.

Hiei, on the other hand, had ignored Tara's comment completely, and was looking around, eyes narrowed. "If you could control your ridiculous laughter for a while detective, then you'll notice that we're being followed,"

Kurama nodded in agreement. "I've been sensing the same thing for quite some time now," he peered into the narrow streets between the buildings as they passed them.

Yusuke stopped laughing, his face suddenly becoming serious. He too, was looking around now, trying to find the person who was spying on them. He didn't feel comfortable in the position of the one being followed and planted his feet firmly on the ground, still standing in the middle of the road. "If anyone's following us they better step forward if they don't wanna die!" he shifted his weight onto his other foot and into a fighting stance. He almost loved it. No, he _did_ love it. Fighting was living for him.

The others stopped as well. Of course Kuwabara did the same as Yusuke, hands fisted, ready to fight. Hiei only looked around. He didn't need to 'get ready' like those idiots. He'd been born ready. Kurama only sighed a little. He tried to figure out where their follower was, but to no avail. Tara, on the other hand, seemed more alarmed and troubled than the others. After having lived in the human world with no threat of being attacked by a demon, she'd grown insecure both in her fighting skill and strength.

Yusuke was slowly starting to get annoyed. "Hey!" he started yelling. "What the hell are you afraid of, huh? Come out and fight you stupid asshole!" provoking the enemy had always been what he was best at.

Tara stared at him in shock. She had not, no matter how stupid she thought he was, expected him to open his mouth and say something like that in a city filled with demons. "What the hell are you doing, Urameshi? Trying to get us killed??"

The girl in the alley narrowed her eyes a little as she watched them. Her tail flicked in annoyance as she emitted a low growl. "Greased back hair and a cocky attitude…that must be Urameshi Yusuke," she murmured to herself. Looking through the now tense group, her eyes came to rest on their tallest member. "Ugly oaf with high spirit awareness…must be Kuwabara Kazuma," she moved further back into the shadows, only waiting for the right moment to step forward and shut them all up. Yusuke's raving was starting to become too much for her. Finally, they started walking again, but did the detective's mouth ever stop running?

"Now you better come out you jerk!" he yelled in aggravation.

She finally stepped out, having had quite enough of him already and only wished for him to shut the hell up. She gave them a hard look as she appeared behind them. "…jerk…?" her tail flicked again. She certainly did not look amused. "Koenma _did_ mention something about you being hot headed and rude, but this is almost too much,"

The group stopped and turned slowly to look at the cat girl. Her black tail continued to flick expectantly, waiting for a response from any of them, tucking a strand of her violet hair behind a velvet cat ear perched atop her head.

Yusuke looked at her and blinked a little in confusion. "Huh? You know about Koenma?" he had completely forgotten that they were supposed to talk to a neko youkai to learn about their mission.

The cat sighed a little. If she'd known it would be this frustrating, she would not have agreed to meet them by herself in the first place. "You're looking for a neko youkai, aren't you?"

Kurama nodded. "Given that you're the only demon we've encountered thus far, it's safe to say that you are the one we're looking for,"

She nodded. "Yes, she's standing right in front of you."


	2. A New Arrival in NingenKai

ShadowDove87: Now for chapter 2! I hope you enjoy reading it. Please review if you can, Qiruama and I would really like to know what you think of our story. Again, constructive criticism is welcome, but try and avoid the destructive kind, thank you!

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**A Battle With Memories**

**Chapter 2 – A New Arrival in NingenKai**

**Authors: Qiruama and ShadowDove87**

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Yusuke's eyes widened. "What? You're the person we're looking for? Then why were you hiding?" it sounded as though he didn't really believe her.

She shrugged casually. "It's in my nature to inspect before acting," she replied. The quick response made the detective shut up, still looking a little mistrusting.

Tara looked at the girl. "Then what about the information you should give us," she wanted the mission to be over as quickly as possible and she wasn't going to waste any time. "Koenma told us you'd be able to tell us what's going on,"

The girl sighed and nodded. "I can. Please follow me," she started walking, glancing over her shoulder with a small smile at the group of five trudging along behind her. "I'm Soraya, by the way," she turned back to look ahead.

Kuwabara, who was walking right behind her, had his eyes glued on her swaying tail. After watching it a little longer, he reached out for it curiously and grabbed it, only to receive a slap across the face.

"Pervert!" she snapped, eyes flashing dangerously. He should consider himself lucky that I didn't use my claws, she thought to herself as she noted his shocked expression with satisfaction. She turned promptly on her heels and kept walking, a little faster than before. She lead them out of the city, where the environment changed very quickly.

Yusuke looked around, frowning a little at how suddenly they could be walking in a lush, green field. Looking over his shoulder to look back at the city, he stopped dead in his tracks. "Hey…! It's gone!"

Kuwabara looked back at him, wondering what in the world he was on about. His eyes widened when he realised what the detective was talking about. The city, that they had left not 5 minutes ago, was no were in sight.

Soraya sighed a little. "It was just an illusion," she explained as she continued walking, not bothering to wait for them. "Koenma set it up for me so I could meet you,"

"Wait a minute, where are we going then?"

This time, she did stop, and slowly turned to face them. "To my village," she said slowly. They stood outside a dense forest, a light fog drifting around them. "Before we go in, I have to tell you a few things," she paused to look around the group, making sure that they were all paying attention. "This is a cat demon village. By nature, we're not very hospitable, so don't be surprised when you don't see anyone out of their homes. To be honest, none of them have seen any other type of demon for centuries. This is a hidden village after all," having given them what she deemed most necessary for the time being, Soraya turned and headed into the forest.

Tara looked at her. She did remember her father telling her something about a hidden village in the north, but he had never told her why it was secluded like that. She remembered having found it weird when she was younger and it had made her want to find it and explore. She never had gotten the chance. Not until now.

Not long after, they reached the centre of the village. A large hut stood in the middle of the village square. It was easily identified as the Elder's home. Soraya stopped again, only a few paces from the front door. "I'll remind you again…my clan is not very convivial. They're not fond of outsiders, save for a select few," she sighed a little, a wave of depression swamping her for a moment before quickly turning away from the group and knocking on the door. They heard a muffled command to come in through the thick wood and the door swung silently open to admit them.

The room was large and circular and obviously frequently used as a meeting hall. Three neko youkai sat at the head of the room, each perched upon a cushion. There were none for the six visitors. Soraya walked to the centre of the room and bowed respectfully before sitting down. None of them reacted, their faces practically set in stone.

The others followed her example. They bowed and sat down. All except for Hiei. It was obvious to him that they were not welcome or wanted there and he was going to make it clear that he had no desire to be there and simply sat down, receiving glares from the two youkai on either side of the third, especially the one on the left. The one with which Soraya had clearly avoided eye contact with. The one in the middle only looked at Hiei in a mildly surprised fashion.

Clearing his throat, the neko youkai in the middle placed his hands on his knees. "So, you are the ones Koenma spoke of? Welcome," he nodded his head a little to all of them in greeting. "These are my two generals, Fukuro and Fuyuji, they will be supplying you, together with Soraya, with the information we have," his voice was calm and collected, although his posture was stiff. "I do not know much myself, but we have been working hard to gather all the information we could,"

Fuyuji, the sapphire haired demon to the elder's right, continued. "Apparently there is a strong force who is trying to take over the MaKai. We believe that it is a wind demon. He has killed many already, even some of our own. We do not know where his current location is, nor are we aware of exactly who we are dealing with. He is extremely dangerous and has many powerful demons working under him. How many is unknown. Your mission is to kill the cardinals, reach the top and kill their leader," his eyes were cold and emotionless as he spoke.

Yusuke raised an eyebrow. "So, our job _is _to kill this bastard, right?"

The elder nodded. "That is correct,"

The young detective started to smirk. "Great! Finally a job with some fun!" everyone looked at him with a raised eyebrow and Soraya couldn't help but smile faintly. He knew no shame. Working with him was going to be interesting.

The elder cleared his throat before speaking again. "If you follow Fukuro, he will show you the data we have collected thus far," the demon to his left nodded, and rose to his feet. His white tail swished as he made his way for the door. Both his and Soraya's ears seemed to flatten against their heads slightly when he passed her.

She got to her feet once he had reached the door and bowed to the elder and the remaining general still sitting at the front of the room. Soraya, representing the connection between the visiting party and the cat demons, walked at the head of the group, behind Fukuro. She tried to stay as far away from him as possible without keeping such a distance that it would be obvious or considered rude.

Tara sighed as she looked around, grateful for the light breeze outside the hut. Somehow, even the air seemed staler now that she knew what was ahead. "This is not going to be easy," Kurama shook his head in agreement. His green eyes, usually gentle and kind, now reflected a hard, serious, determination.

The general lead them through the village and past a brilliant waterfall that cascaded down from incredible heights, splitting and winding around mossy ledges before spilling into a large, crystal blue, pool at the mountain's base. He gave them no time to admire the sight as he quickly ushered them into a damp and dingy cave. He stopped at the mouth, the light behind him making him seem ominous. "This cave contains all the information we have collected so far," he started, his eyes narrowing as he looked at each of them carefully. "Take your time to study them," and with that, he left the cave.

They all looked around the roomy cavern. The insistent _dripdrip_ from somewhere deeper in the cave did not help the gloomy atmosphere. Even the oh-so proud Yusuke seemed smaller and quieter than before. Slots had been cut out of the stone wall. 26 of them. A letter of the alphabet etched under each cavity. The slot labelled 'W' was nearly empty. Spread out over a large table were several stacks covered in animal skins. "They cover the papers so they don't get ruined by the humidity," Soraya explained. Tara noted how she said 'they' rather than 'we'.

Kurama walked to them. Even his mood had darkened since they'd stepped in. Opening one of the skins he leafed through the sheets of paper preserved inside.

"It looks like most of this information is on wind demons in general. That would explain why they're so old," Kurama was surprised to hear Soraya right beside him. He had not thought that she, such a young demon, most likely even the youngest among them, would be looking into something like this. "Here's something more recent," Soraya continued, opening one of the smaller stacks. Her eyes narrowed as she read the file at the top, her voice rising in disbelief. "Apparently the Elder sent out scouts in an attempt to track down the enemies. Their bodies were found a month later, maimed, tortured and dead," a handful of pictures slipped out from between the pages and she bent down to pick them up, wishing she hadn't the instant she laid eyes on the images. She slowly lowered them onto the table and took a step back.

Yusuke raised an eyebrow in mild curiosity and took the pictures to see for himself. None of them were pleasant and all were too brutal to describe. He wasn't sure that even he, after having been spirit detective for nearly four years, had witnessed anything of this sort. He let out a sigh. "Looks like this guy likes to play around, huh?"

Kurama nodded. His eyes were still narrowed as he skimmed through the papers Soraya had handed to him. "I think I may have heard of them before, though I don't remember much. Hiei, do you know anything about them?" he glanced over his shoulder towards the black clad demon, green eyes almost as bright as Soraya's in the darkness.

"Hnn," Hiei muttered as he took a look at some of the files. "Their ways sound familiar," his face darkened as he found yet another picture from one of the older files. He frowned and passed it on to Yusuke, who almost jumped out of his skin in shock at the image he was being shown. His face was pale. Hiei continued, barely fazed by what he had seen. "These methods of torture could be from one of our enemy's cardinals, but they are definitely from a wind demon name Ginta," he took the picture from Yusuke and threw it on the table for all the others to see.

"Ginta?" Tara turned to look at Hiei, just a glance at the image enough to make her want to run. "I've heard about him before. I remember my mother telling me something about the wind demons when I was little," she fell silent, remembering her mother's words. "…He was feared…"

Soraya had made a point of not looking at the picture. Yusuke's reaction was more than enough for her. Walking over to one of the slots in the wall, she pulled out a very thin file. Collecting information on Ginta was, after all, nearly impossible. "According to this he disappeared 75 years ago. Some believed he was dead, while others thought he went into hiding. Looks like the latter may have been right…"

"Okay…" Yusuke had finally recovered from what he'd seen in the picture. "I admit, this might be dangerous,"

"Might? Might you say? Yusuke, he's a god damn psycho! This _is_ going to be very dangerous!" Tara exclaimed, about ready to shove Yusuke's head in a dryer to see if that would straighten him out at all.

"So…" Soraya leaned against the wall, the tip of her tail brushing the floor in obvious fear. "Anyone got any bright ideas…?"

There was a moment of silence before Kuwabara piped up. "We should just go in and take him by surprise! I'll beat the crap out of him, no sweat!"

Yusuke promptly whacked him over the head. "What, have you lost your brain or something?!"

Hiei closed his eyes, crossing his arms in agitation. "You'd be the first one dead you moron,"

Kuwabara winced, rubbing the already growing bump on the back of his head. "Hey! She asked for ideas!"

"Bright ideas, not yours," Hiei growled his response.

The three of them continued to argue back and forth. In the mean time, Soraya had pulled out a piece of paper, looking over it with a troubled look on her face. It was a record of all the people Ginta had killed and most of them were men. There were very few women listed. Out of the thousands of names, probably only a handful weren't male. So they had found his weakness.

Kurama nodded in agreement to the conclusion she had made. "It does say here that he once spared a kitsune youkai's life and she tried to seduce and kill him. She, of course, failed, but it does prove that he has a soft spot for women,"

"If you ask me, he sounds more like the leader than one of those cardinal thingies,"

"No one was asking you," Hiei snapped, glaring at Kuwabara and muttering 'village idiot' under his breath.

Soraya shook her head. "No, Kuwabara has a point. It doesn't seem like someone as powerful as Ginta would bow down and serve someone else,"

"Hey!" Yusuke's face suddenly lit up. "I have a plan!" Even Kurama looked surprised at this revelation. He doubted it would go down well. "Ok, it's really simple. All we gotta do is send Tara and Soraya in to seduce him and we'll do the rest!"

Tara's eyes flashed. "You gotta be kidding me…"

Soraya growled, her ears flattened against her head and she looked as though she was about ready to pounce on Yusuke for suggesting something like that. Anyone watching her would have thought she was overreacting, but all eyes were on Yusuke.

"There is no way in hell _I'm_ doing something like _that_!" she hissed.

Kurama shook his head. "No Yusuke, it's far too dangerous and unpredictable of a plan to work. There are too many unknown elements,"

Yusuke made a face. "Fine, anyone else come up with something better then?"

Kuwabara opened his mouth to, obviously, come up with another brilliant suggestion, but a voice at the mouth of the cave made all their heads turn.

"If you're all done, I will take you back to the elder,"

So their time was up. Soraya sighed and shook her head. She should have known that they wouldn't be able to take their time with this. Putting the file back down on the table she started for the cave mouth, stopping several arm's lengths from Fukuro. "Thank you, but I think we'll just take our leave. Please give my regards and gratitude to the elder," she walked right past him with an air of indifference.

They followed her out in silence. Even Kuwabara thought it better to keep his mouth shut, especially after seeing the look on Fukuro's face. When they'd finally left the forest that surrounded the village, they all relaxed. Kurama moved to walk beside and obviously troubled Soraya, giving her a comforting smile, while the other four bickered behind them.

"Are you coming with us?"

After a moment's thought she nodded. "I think so. I don't think it would be right of me to just leave you to it after learning about all those things you'll be facing,"

Kurama couldn't help but feel rather surprised. She really was only a kitten and it seemed as though she was trying act older than she was, take on more than she could handle. "You don't have to, you know that. You don't have any responsibility to us,"

"I know, I know, but…well," she looked over her shoulder to where Tara was arguing with Yusuke and Kuwabara, both boys laughing as they continued to tease and make fun of her. "I can't just leave Tara alone with a bunch of guys, can I?"

Kurama chuckled and nodded. "I'm sure she'll be grateful,"

Kuwabara suddenly appeared beside them. "Hey hey! When are we gonna go kick wind demon butt then??" he sounded a little too excited for his own good.

Hiei's eyebrow twitched in annoyance. It seemed that, no matter how many time you hit them, humans never learned. "If he is the leader of this group, then we can't just approach him,"

"Besides, I have a feeling he'll be coming to us,"

Tara blinked and turned to Soraya curiously. "Wait, you mean you're going to help us?" her spirits lifted a little when the neko youkai nodded.

Yusuke sighed, putting his hands behind his head as they walked. "So what? We wait around for him to attack us?" he made a face when Soraya nodded. "Oh yeah, this is gonna be exciting," he rolled his eyes. "Then what are we supposed to do until then?"

"Go home?"

Tara eyes widened a little when she heard what Soraya had suggested. "Wait, we can go home?"

She smiled. "Of course you can go home, you don't expect to be kept here until you finished the mission, do you? Besides, I heard a rumour that a powerful demon escaped to the NingenKai. Maybe it's one of the cardinals?"

Kuwabara whooped and punched the air. "We're going home! This place was giving me the creeps! Come on Urameshi!!!" grabbing Yusuke, he ran off.

Soraya sweatdropped. "…Does he even know where he's going?"

Tara shook her head and placed a sympathetic hand on her shoulder. "I doubt it, but don't worry, you get used to it," raising an eyebrow, she watched in amusement as Kuwabara dragged a flailing Yusuke around.

"I can't find a portal!" he hollered in their rough direction.

"Idiot. You think the portal would still be up?" Hiei stood, leaning against a tree, arms crossed. Why did he even bother?

Soraya laughed. "Come on, I know where a portal to the NingenKai is. Koenma said he'd open one two hours after you reached the MaKai," she explained as she lead them further from the forest. Approximately 20 minutes later, they found a large lake, surrounded by reeds and covered in lily pads. Floating above the murky water, in the centre, was a portal.

"Eh…" Kuwabara scratched his head as he stared at it. "How are we gonna get there…?"

Yusuke smirked. "Easy! Jump!" he didn't wait for anyone to correct him as he took a running leap and flew through the portal. The rest of the group looked at each other for a moment before shrugging and following his example, the portal closing behind them as they appeared in the human world.

Soraya looked around, wide eyed. Everything looked so strange here. Every inch of land was paved, the houses were made of stone, there was glass in the windows and…there were funny poles with lights on the end lining the street.

"So this is your first time in the human world, isn't it?" Soraya nodded in response to Kurama's question, still looking around in bewilderment.

Tara took Soraya's arm and pulled her out of harm's way as a car drove past them. "Come on, you can stay with me," she laughed when the neko youkai looked at her gratefully, having heard Kuwabara insisting that he be her host during her stay.

Yusuke faked a yawn and stretched. "Well, I better get going, it's late and I'm tired,"

Tara raised an eyebrow. "Yusuke, it's barely 9…you have a date with Keiko, don't you?"

"Eh! It's not a date"

She only laughed when he walked off. They bid the other's good night and the two girls went on their own way. Hiei watched them a moment from his perch in one of the taller trees. He wanted to make sure no demon had managed to get through the portal before them and was lurking in one of the dark corners, waiting to attack. Not that he would ever admit that to anyone else, he barely admitted it to himself. He would much rather be known to be cold and calculating than warm and fuzzy.

Tara stopped in front of a white, two story house and unlocked the door, holding it open for Soraya, who wandered in with big eyes. Her tail swished in apprehension as she stared holes into the flowered wallpaper in the kitchen.

Tara laughed at the expression on her new companion's face. "Come on, I'll show you your room and then we can have something to eat,"

Soraya nodded, still staring around wide eyed. The rooms weren't lit with candles but with light bulbs, Tara had explained. Almost everything was carpeted, it seamed. Chairs, couches, floors, even the stairs. Soraya came to the conclusion that humans liked their comfort.

"Here we are!" Tara opened a door at the top of the stairs and hit the lights. The room was relatively large with a bed pushed under a window. Soraya wandered in and sat down on the bed, patting the pillows after a moment with satisfaction. Tara couldn't help but laugh. "I thought you'd like it and I'm sure my sister won't mind if you use it,"

Soraya stood and followed her back out and into the kitchen. "You have a sister?"

"Yeah, and older sister, but she's not home much,"

Smiling a little, the neko youkai looked around, poking the fridge curiously as it hummed away. "Umm…siblings are a nice thing to have, ne?"

Tara nodded absentmindedly as she pulled out a pot from the pantry. "Yeah I guess so, they can be a pain sometimes though," she smirked when Soraya laughed.

A few minutes later she set two bowels on the table. Scratching her head and sniffing it curiously, Soraya stared at her food. There seemed to be stringy things floating in a flavoured and coloured liquid with a few vegetables thrown in, along with some chicken. Good, at least she knew some of the stuff she was eating. Tara watched her in amusement. Living with her was going to be fun.

Picking up the chopsticks she puzzled at her food once more before deciding that, the only way she was going to get anywhere was by actually trying some. She only had to take one bite before her face lit up, the rest of the noodles gone moments later.

"I take it you liked it then," Tara laughed when Soraya nodded enthusiastically. "If you think this is good, you should try pizza,"

Soraya wrinkled her nose. "Pizza? Humans sure do have odd names for their food,"

Tara laughed again. The cat demon reminded her so much of how she felt when she'd first come to live here. "Yeah, but it's damn good! You sure try it one day,"

"I will…" she got up and helped Tara clear up the table, watching the thunder demon do the dishes with big eyes. "Umm…could I ask you something?" she took a plate and dried it with the towel Tara handed her, continuing when her hostess nodded. "How did you come to live here? Being a youkai, what from you to NingenKai?"

Tara shrugged casually, scrubbing out another bowl. "I don't know…it was so many years ago, I can't remember the reason anymore. But I won't go back now," she added the last bit with a sigh. She faintly remembered having a home in the MaKai and she could recall the names and faces of a friend or two, but nothing actually gave her a yearning to return to the land she was born in.

Soraya smiled as she listened to Tara tell her about the human world. It seemed a lot easier than where she'd come from. For one thing, you didn't have to kill for food. No longer hearing the accusations of being a traitor… her mind drifted back to her own childhood and when she came back to reality, she found Tara waving a dripping plate in front of her face, asking if she was alright. Soraya stared at her a moment before laughing and taking the plate, reassuring her that she was just daydreaming.

Once they'd finished with the dishes, Tara bid her a good night and told her to come wake her if she needed anything.

"I think I'll be fine, but thank you,"

The thunder demon nodded, looking at Soraya another moment before giving her a quick hug. "Welcome to the NingenKai,"


	3. Obese Cats and Unwanted Sisters

ShadowDove87: hello everyone! I realise this chapter took a little longer to bring out than the last one...then again, this is only the third chapter. :P Oh well, blame it on me being lazy, I made it take two extra days sweatdrops. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter!

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**A Battle with Memories**

**Chapter 3 – Obese Cats and Unwanted Sisters**

**Authors: Qiruama and ShadowDove87**

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The next morning was a blast. The girls were woken by Yusuke's pounding on the front door. "C'mon girls, it's raining out here!" he cursed as he continued banging, almost causing it to fall in.

The whole team stood outside Tara's house, waiting for one of the two to let them in. Tara growled as she threw her feet over the side of the bed and forced herself up. Trudging down the stairs she pulled the door open and let them in, glaring at Yusuke. "Happy now?" she snapped as she closed the it behind them.

"Yeah yeah," the teen mumbled as he pushed his way past her and into the kitchen.

Kurama looked at her apologetically. "You'll have to excuse him, he's been in a bad mood all morning,"

The young thunder demon frowned and gave Yusuke a hard look. She hated early mornings and at that moment she found she hated Yusuke just as much. She stood in the doorway, looking at the four dripping boys standing in the middle of her kitchen. "It's only 11, couldn't you have waited at least a few hours?"

"Sorry miss perfect, but we're in a hurry, remember?" he growled, making it very clear to her, and everyone else, that he was in a very bad mood.

"Yeah!" Kuwabara nodded enthusiastically, all the tension seemed to pass right over his head. "We get to kick butt!" the others only sweatdropped. It seemed that not even the weather could dampen his spirits.

"Hnn," Hiei grunted, leaning against the wall, retaining an indignant air about him even with the puddle of rainwater forming at his feet. "It sounds more like someone's planning their own funeral,"

Kuwabara stared at the shorter demon for a moment before slowly getting to his feet, obviously offended. "I dare you to say that again shorty!"

Tara sighed, shaking her head as she chose to ignore their constant bickering. It was getting really old really fast. "I'll go get Soraya then," leaving the noisy kitchen, she walked down the hall and up the stairs, hitting the lights as she went. The storm clouds made her house look dark and gloomy. It didn't comfort her in the least.

Soraya, hating the rain, had curled herselp up into a ball under the sheets. She had forced herself out of bed earlier when the banging had woken her and, when realising who it was, she went promptly back to bed, hoping that, if they didn't see her, they'd forget she was there and just let her sleep. She soon found that sleep was but a distant dream. Their raised voices had swept up the stairs and into her room, keeping the sand man far from her no matter how she hid under the covers. Her hopes dwindled when she heard a knock on the door.

"Soraya?" she lifted her head out from under the sheets when she heard Tara's voice, promtply curling up again.

_If I don't say anything, maybe she'll go away..._

"Soraya, you have to come down...the boys are here," Tara managed before yawning, leaning against the wall a little as she spoke.

"I don't wanna...!" Soraya muttered from under the covers. It had taken her a while to get confortable the night before and now, that she had finally made her nest, she wasn't about to leave it.

Now leaning against the door, the young thunder demon pleaded with her through the thin wood. "Please don't leave me alone with them!"

Finally giving in, Soraya stretched and pushed herself out of bed. Shaking off the covers she found her clothes, which she had kicking off the night before, and got dressed. Finally opening the door, she found that Tara reflected her own exhaustion right back at her. "Once this mission's over..." she mumbled, lacking imagination in her sleep deprived mind. Her ears flattened against her head when she noticed the clock in the hall, slowly turning to look back at Tara. "But it's so early..." she whined, watching Tara start down the stairs.

"Tell them," she said, nodding in the direction of the kitchen.

Yusuke, who had never been in Tara's house before, looked around curiously. "So she lives here alone...?" he half muttered to himself. He hadn't believed the rumor before now, everyone else he knew had at least an older sibling to care for them. It was clear though, through the abstract way the house was decorated, that no older generations lived there. He scratched his head a little, staring at the curtains and carpets, couches, chairs, tables...how could she afford it all? He knew she didn't have a job, or at least he thought he knew.

"Cool!" Kuwabara chirped, staring at the huge living room. "We could have parties here!!!" no one commented, the rest of the group ignored the beaming human.

Finally, the girls wandered down the stairs, neither looking all too happy. Both were now dressed, albeit in lose, comfortable clothes, which would explain the time it took them to finally come back down.

"Who gets up at this time?" Soraya asked, looking annoyed as she sat down on the couch.

"So," Tara started as she sat down next to the cat, their expressions identical. "Any luck finding the guy we're looking for?"

The fire demon shook his head, his eyes closed, arms crossed. "None,"

"Yay," Soraya muttered sarcastically. "So the reason you got us up this early, was...?"

"So we can go out and look for him, smarty," Yusuke retorted, standing in front of the mirror with a comb, trying to slick his hair back again, but the rain had washed out too much of the gel for it to stick.

"And if we can't find him," Kuwabara ventured, distractedly trying to grab onto the black tail swishing back and forth in front of his face. "Maybe we should just wait 'till he shows himself...he'll try to kill us eventually, right?"

Soraya glared at him, moving her tail out of his reach, thinking about what he'd said for a moment before nodding. "He actually has a point..."

"Oh great," Tara sighed, stretching a little. "And when he finally shows up, how are we supposed to deal with him?" she hated the idea of fighting a demon in the human world. What if something went wrong and the humans found out? The again, the humans were stupid and refused to believe what they didn't want to admit was real. If they saw something, perhaps they could shrug it off and blame it on the weather or stress. Hopefully.

Soraya sighed, looking around the room. "Look, we know that Ginta's weakness is women. Now if we could somehow find out the weakness of his cardinals then-" her voice trailed off as she frowned, sitting up a little, tentatively sniffing the air.

Kurama glanced at her curiously when he saw her doing so, well aware of the fact that an animal youkai's senses were sharper than most other demons'. "Soraya? Is something wrong?"

Her eyes narrowed as she continued sniffing the air. "I smell a cat," she began slowly.

Hiei raised an eyebrow. "A...cat?" he could only imagine she meant a demon. The girl sensing a household feline would just be a nuisance.

"Big, ugly, evil...you know the drill," she glanced at the boys a little, a hint of a smirk touching her lips. "Traitors tend to have a very distinct and...prominent, body odor," she wrinkled her nose and pulled her head back a little.

It took a moment before the situation sunk into Yusuke's head and he jumped up. It didn't take long for the others to follow him. The first cardinal was on the move and he was close. It was time for action.

Yusuke grinned, his mood finally improving. "Let's get this party started!"

"So they finally found us," Kurama stepped outside with the others, looking around as he tried to sense their opponent.

"Yes, but he's moving away," Soraya started, her smirk revealing her feline fangs, incandescent even in the gloomy weather. "He came here on purpose and now he wants to play," she jumped up, into the trees and ran towards the scent, the others following her as she was the only one at that moment who could track him down.

Big and ugly, a cat, a cardinal. It couldn't be that hard to find him, but where was he? Hiei finally found him, having restorted to opening his Jagan. "Two blocks from here," he stated as they continued to move.

"Uh," Soraya looked over her shoulder, noting the serious, but excited looks on their faces. "Did I mentioned he was ridiculously overweight and probably slow?"

Yusuke laughed. "Is he trying to make it easier for us to kill him, or what?"

Tara couldn't help but smile when she heard him. Never had she seen him like this before. Of course she'd witnessed his fights in the schoolyard with Kuwabara often enough, but this was different. This battle was dangerous and held unmentionable risks. It gave him a rush that no other fight could give him. This time, it was serious.

"They're more reliable than they look," Hiei reassured the thunder demon.

Tara glanced at Hiei for a moment, unsure of how to interpret the unsually kind words. She smiled a little and nodded, sweatdropping when she heard Kuwabara repeat what Hiei said...in an overly loud voice. A short run later, they came to a halt, face to face with their opponent. "Oh god," Soraya grimaced, falling back towards the group a little. "I wish he wasn't a cat..."

Hiei smirked, watching the kitten in an amused way. "Hurting your pride?"

"That and...if he wasn't a cat I wouldn't be able to smell him as well," she wrinkled her nose again, wincing a little as the cat wobbled towards them.

Kurama laughed when he heard her, turning to look at her with a calming smile. "I think cats are beautiful creatures...at least some of them," she looked back at him gratefully and smiled.

Tara frowned a little as she looked at the cat. He really was big and ugly and didn't look very nice. The again, he did seem like an idiot. In spite of the rain and the fact that they were still in Ningenkai, she had started building up energy. After not having trained in years she had no idea how much help she would be to the rest of the team, but there was no better time than the present to find out. Her hand glowed blue for a few moments before a short sword of pure energy materialised in her outstretched palm. "Now you can count me in...!"

Hiei glanced at her, noting her enthusiasm. His energy was already flowing off him in steady waves, eyes trained on the cat, who was looking rather smug in his protective layer of fat.

Yusuke raised his hand, pointing at the cat with an overconfident smirk. "There you are!"

Kurama quickly lowered his arm. "Yusuke, it would not be wise to attack him just yet," his advice went unheard by another member of their team though, and he looked up to see Kuwabara running at him, sword forming in his hand. Pulling his arm back from Kurama, Yusuke followed his friend's example, running at the cat, his finger glowing with spirit energy.

The cat only laughed. He was bigger than them. Much bigger. His fur was thick, gray and clogged with mud, the black stripes barely recognisable. He was ready for them. He figured it would be an easy fight if they were all as simple minded as their human friend who had run straight into a nearby trashcan. He swung his tail forward and grabbed Kuwabara just as the tall boy was scrambling out from the heap. "Look what we have here!" he purred, his attention turning away from the struggling human and to the group before him. "I'm Hiko, the one who's going to kill you maggots! If you're not carefuly, you'll end up like your stupid friend!"

Kurama narrowed his eyes, flicking his wrist, the rose whip forming in his hand. "Rather than howl in triumph, I'd prefer you start talking and tell us where we can find this Ginta," his eyes were carefully trained on Hiko, watching his every movement, but his mind was already forming a plan on how to free the yelling Kuwabara.

Hiko giggled tauntingly, his voice booming over them. "And you think that plant is going to threaten me?" he looked at the rose whip again before howling with laughter, holding his enormous belly.

Hiei growled and drew his katana. No one in their right mind spoke that way to Kurama. Even in his human form, the redhead was a formidable opponent. The cat would pay for the remark. "Don't underestimate him,"

"The shrimp's right you know fatty!" standing behind Hiko was Yusuke, arms stretched out in front of him, smirking as his finger started to hum softly with the energy collected at its tip. While the cat was having his fun with Kuwabara, the spirit detective had used the distraction to run around the overgrown animal. "Spirit Gun!" he fired off a beam of light, aiming straight for the cat's middle.

Hiko laughed as he watched the ball of energy soar towards him, leaning back and drinking in huge gulps of air, his body gradually taking on mass. The spirit energy made perfect impact with their opponent, burrying itself deep in Hiko. It looked as though the short fight was already over, when the attack suddenly shot out of him again, sailing right at Yusuke, who managed to leap out of harms way just in time.

Staring at the crater in the ground beside him, Yusuke blinked, scratching his head. This was crazy! Being fat was good for something now?

Tara growled in anger and agitation when she saw Yusuke lying on the ground, staring dumbfounded at the hole beside him. Turning her attention to the cat, she began to charge at him, her body starting to glow with a light, blue hue as she ran for him. There was no way she would let a fat cat like that make a fool her friends, or well, teammates.

Kurama's eyes widened when he realised what she had in mind. "Tara! No!" but it was too late, she had already raised her arm to attack.

Hiko only laughed. He was obviously enjoying this, laughing more when he remembered how his master had warned him to be careful. "Let's see what you have up your sleeve!"

Tara smirked as she ran at him. What was she smirking for? She would be dead in a few moments anyway, at least at the rate she was going it would be the most likely outcome. The expression on her face only grew more mischevious as the distance between them diminished. "You think you're so good huh?"

Hiko nodded in response, grinning widely, revealing two rose of razor sharp teeth. Glancing over his shoulder he blinked in mild surprise when he noticed the same girl standing behind him. Were there two of them? Twins he hadn't noticed before? No, Tara had created a clone.

"You're too slow!" her clone yelled and jumped into the air, aiming her attack at his throat. At the same time, Tara jumped up from in front of him, knowing he could not dodge both their attacks. Hiko stared at them a moment, temporarily immobilised by the notion that his prey could actually think. He growled a little and fazed out in the last second, appearing in the air, high above them. Glaring down at them he wiped off the blood that dripped from his whiskers from the shallow gashes in his cheek.

Soraya's eyes widened as she looked up. "He...he can still do that? Even with his weight?"

Hiko cackled, now on his way down. The air seemed to vibrate and quake around them as he came crashing back to the ground. Looking up, Tara's eyes widened. She stood directly beneath him and there was no hope for her escape. She would have been killed, if it was not for a certain fire demon's fast thinking. She turned to look at him, still rather pale from the initial shock. "Thank you..."

"Hnn," was Hiei's only response as he put her down on the ground with the others. He turned his attention back to the obese cat. He was getting annoyed.

Yusuke's eyes flashed, his spirit energy flaring up around him. "You bastard!" he pointed at him again and readied another shot. Before he could execute his attack, a fat tail swept down and wrapping itself tightly around him. Yusuke was flung back and forth, the cat smacking him between two brick buildings. Kuwabara had been abandoned in an exhausted heap at Hiko's feet.

Kurama watched their opponent's movements carefully. Although powerful, his weight, his ultimate defence, slowed him down, resulting in clumsy and sluggish maneuvers. Pulling his arm back he whisked his whip forward, watching the thorned vine wrap around a thick ankle. "Now! Do something!" he pulled back as the cat lifted his foot to try and free himself.

Hiei set off at a jump, pulling his katana out in one, fluid motion, cutting through the tail and landing safely on the ground behind the beast, his sword safely back inside its sheath.

Hiko yowled in pain as his tail plummeted to the ground with Yusuke. Cursing a little, the teen struggled to shove the hairy object off him, sighing when he'd finally freed himself. Getting back to his feet, he turned his attention to the hissing cat, completely ignoring the appendage behind him. Once again, he prepared his attack to fire at the distracted demon. Aiming at the creature's head he did not notice a shadow rising behind him. He looked up when Soraya suddenly ordered for him to duck. He dropped to the ground just in time, hearing the whistle of a kunai as it shot through the air above him. A choking gargle emitted from behind him. The tail had reformed into a neko minor and had raised its claws to slice the spirit detective in two.

Soraya jumped and landed next to the creation, taking her kunai back. "I...I thought that technique had died out..." looking up at the others, she wiped the blood off on her trousers. "We can't amputate him in any way, his limbs will only grow into something like this!" she jumped back to them, landing in their midst. "We'll have to finish him off in one go. If we could trap him somewhere, Yusuke could blast him with a spirit gun. That might do it,"

Tara growled once again, turning to glare at the cat. "I have a plan," she started slowly. "I don't know if it'll work but we have to try," she turned to look at Kurama. "Make sure to hold him down," with that she started to run at the cat, stopping a few meters from him. She glared at him one last time before starting to glow blue again. This time her whole body was enveloped in the light. She closed her eyes as the energy started to flow through her veins.

Hiko, who was still in pain because of the loss of his tail, had reached his limit and his eyes flashing blood red. He stomped towards Tara in a mad rage. "I'll kill you!" He yelled at her. He started to run, causing the ground to shake and crack beneath him.

Hiei narrowed his eyes and was ready to jump in if the cat got too close but was stopped by Kurama. "Don't.. Look at her," he said, not taking his eyes off her.

Her eyes snapped open again, glaring venemously at Hiko, who was only a few meters from her now. "Take one more step and you're dead!" lightning bolts sailed down from the skies, striking the asphalt at the demon's feet. With each passing second the light show danced closer to him, finally striking him with a hard blow.

Screaming in pain, the cat shot himself up into the air. Curling himself into a protective ball of fur and fat he spun down onto the street, creating an even greater crater than the first time.

That was Kurama's cue. He ran to the cat, planted seeds around him and quickly jumped back. He watched as the vines wrap around him, making even the overweight creature unable to move; he was captured.

Tara sighed in relief when seeing Kurama make his move. Her eyes began to droop and she felt herself falling. She turned her head to see Hiei holding her, again. He had spared her another painful impact. "Thank you, again," she said while closing her eyes. That last attack had drained her of her energy and she had nothing left. She had not trained since she had first arrived in the NingenKai and it was finally taking its toll on her.

"Hnn" he didn't look at her, still holding, supporting her. The others looked at Hiei and Tara for some time in surprise, remaining commentless for their own safety. They finally turned their attention back to the captured and struggling cat.

"Now I think it's my turn!" Yusuke lifted his hand one last time, powering up again. He smirked as he jumped into the air, pointing his finger at the cat. "Spirit Gun!" The blast of energy made contact. His struggle to free himself from his plant prison only grew more desperate, but it was too late. There was a bright flash of light and then nothing. After the fog of the attack had settled down, the group saw nothing but scraps of flesh and bone lying on the street where the cat had been. He was finally dead and the fight was over.

They all sighed in relief. Kuwabara was still lying unconscious on the ground. Yusuke, who had just enough energy to stand, went over to Kuwabara and heaved him up onto his shoulder. Looking around for a moment, Kurama came to the conclusion that, luckily, there had been no humans in the vicinity during the attack. "Most likely they mistakened the sound for thunder," the redhead explained calmly.

It wasn't until then that they realised it was still storming. Hiko had done a satisfactory job of distracting them from that discomfort. Hiei finally put Tara down on the ground again as he felt her energy returning. As long as she was able to walk, he did not see why he had to carry her. She smiled gratefully in return as she turned to the others, still looking tired.

"We did it," looking around the group another moment she promptly sat down on the ground. She did not have enough energy after all. She leaned against Hiei's legs, closing her eyes a little again. The fire demon only looked at her a moment, but did not move. He crossed his arms, snorting in annoyance.

"Hnn."

Soraya nodded and smiled at Kurama, very grateful to have the plant user with them. "We did it!"

Kurama laughed as he looked at her, nodding. "Yes, it seems we have one less fight ahead of us now."

Soraya frowned a little as she looked at her drenched clothes. "I can't believe I stayed out in the rain for so long," they all laughed and she sweatdropped.

"So what do we do now? When are we gonna fight the next cardinal?" Kuwabara asked, having regained consciousness in time to realise that they'd won.

Soraya shook her head and sighed a little, wondering how the recently comatose human could want to fight again so soon. "Well, the best thing to do is probably to wait until the next cardinal shows up. I know it's frustrating, but it shouldn't take long considering we've defeated the first one. They'll want to stop us now."

Tara finally got to her feet again. She sighed, feeling rather pathetic that she could barely stand on her own two feet. Soraya looked at her and smiled in an encouraging way, knowing what the thunder demon was thinking about. "Don't worry Tara, you helped a lot. If it hadn't been for you we would probably still be fighting that jerk and besides, I'm sure you'll have regained your energy before next fight."

Tara looked back at her and smiled, nodding a little. "Thank you."

They turned to retrace their tracks in the pouring rain. At the back of the group, Yusuke walked with Tara, holding her up and supporting her weight. Kuwabara had enthusiastically suggested that Hiei carry her home, but the thunder demon had blatantly refused, stating that she would be fine on her own, thank you very much. When they finally reached the house again, they found that someone else had come to occupy it. The front door stood wide open. Yusuke dropped Tara as he readied his spirit gun again. The thought that he had no more energy didn't really occur to him. But, instead of a cardinal, a beautiful young woman stepped into the doorway and she did not look happy. Her hair was jet black and her eyes shone a brilliant green against the dark rain as she looked out at them.

Tara stared at her in surprise from her spot on the floor ground, and, when seeing her, a look of relief washed over the new comer's sharp features and she smiled. "Tara, there you are,"

The younger girl proceeded to glare at her. "Amara," the rest of them tea looked between the two of them wondering what it was that seemed to bother Tara so much about her. With a sigh and a quick apology, yusuke helped her to her feet again, the others following her to the front step and into the house.

Amara waited until the group had filed in, quietly closing the door behind them. She ventured into the living room where Yusuke eased Tara onto the couch. "I was worried," Kurama looked at her a little as he tried to sense who she was. Looking a little surprised he turned his attention back to the thunder demon who waved away the helping hands and got back on her feet.

She walked right past Amara and into the kitchen without looking at any of them. "I'm sure,"

Amara sighed, shaking her head a little before turning to look at the others, smiling pleasantly. "I'm sorry, you must be Tara's friends. I'm her older sister, Amara,"

Soraya blinked, a little surprised by the newest revelation. She recalled Tara mentioning that she had an older sibling the night before, but she would expect her companion to be thrilled at the idea of seeing her again. Tara was showing the exact opposite. Slowly getting up as well, she followed her into the kitchen. She titled her head to the side in response to the questioning look she was being given. "You're not happy about having her home?"

Tara frowned and turned back to the countertop where she had been preparing lunch, ignoring the fact that she was still dripping. Soraya offered her a towel that Amara had handed them earlier and the thunder demon took it with a sigh, wrapping her hair up in it for a start. She smiled at her a little before shaking her head. "You don't have to worry Soraya, it's ok, really,"

The cat sighed, watching her prepare the sandwhiches for a while before nodding. "Alright, if you say so," she turned to go, stopping a little when she found Amara looking at them.

Tara didn't have to turn around to know she was being watched. "When will you be leaving again Amara?"

"You still hate me, huh?" Amara couldn't help but force a half hearted smile. "Don't worry, I'll be gone in a few minutes. I just wanted to check up on you, make sure you're ok..."

It was no use, Tara still blatantly refused to look at her, she only nodded. Soraya, deciding it was better if she wasn't in the kitchen, slipped out behind the older girl, walking back into the living room where the others were still trying to make themselves comfortable in their wet clothes.

Walking to her, Amara gently, but firmly, took her sister's arm to get her to stop and pay attention. "You've been fighting?" she looked concerned, knowing Tara hadn't been training and wouldn't be able to hold her own for long.

"Is it that obvious?" she muttered sarcastically, pulling her arm away as she piled the sandwhiches onto a tray.

Amara sighed and took a step back. "I better get going now...Tara, take care and don't do anything stupid," with a small smile, she disappeared, leaving behind a light charge in the air.

Tara growled a little as she grabbed the tray, glaring holes into the ground where the older thunder demon had been standing. She could never forgive her.

After making grabs for the sandwhiches, silence reigned over them. No one said anything for a long time as they at. They looked at each other occasionally, but their first and foremost priority was their stomach. Soraya sighed a while after she'd finished her sandwhich, proceeding to break the silence. "Alrght," her gaze slowly met Tara's, wondering if she wasn't stepping over the line. "Tara...what's going on between you and your sister?" she finally asked.

Tara sighed as she looked at her, slowly lowering her sandwhich. Someone would have asked the question eventually. "She did something I can't forgive," she did not sound angry, but rather annoyed. Annoyed by the fact that her sister had come out to NingenKai to check up on her. Especially because it was completely unnecessary and only left Tara in a bad mood afterwards.

"Eh and...what was that?" Yusuke's mouth was still stuff with food but he had choked it down, looking expectantly at her.

"You don't have to answer if you don't want to," Soraya added gently. So far she was getting along very well with the demonness and she had no intention of ruining what could possibly become a promising friendship.

Tara looked at their expectant faces with a sigh. She was never going to finish her lunch. Even Hiei, who usually avoided any sort of casual interaction, was looking at her with mild interest. "She killed our father," she had suddenly lost appetite, putting the half eaten sandwhich to the side. "I don't know why, she never said," she figured it was easier to answer their next question before they had a chance to ask. "Mom died a week later and then my sister moved out, leaving me here. That's all." she got back to her feet and walked into the kitchen, dropping what was left of her meal in the trash.

Yusuke stared at her, mouth agape. He'd never imagined that Tara had gone through something like that. He'd always just thought of her as one of those loners. He'd thought her living alone was pretty cool...until now. "I'm sorry..." he looked down at his empty plate, wondering if he was going to get whacked now for prying.

Tara looked at them, leaning against the doorframe, shaking her head. "Don't be...it was a long time ago. You asked and I answered. No hard feelings," she offered him a half hearted smile, reassuring him that it was alright.

After everyone had eaten their fill and Soraya had rounded the boys up to help clean up the mess they'd left, Kurama agreed to train Tara. They stood outside in the garden, enjoying the pleasant rays of sunshine after the storm. Soraya had declined the offer of training with them and had retired to her room, yawning as she climbed the stairs. Kuwabara had duly followed her exampled and crashed on Tara's couch, literally. The pillows were strewn around the living room, and Tara wondered if she would have to buy a new couch, with all the flailing Kuwabara was doing. The boy slept like a dog. Yusuke had chosen to go home and get some dry clothes. He'd admitted to feeling icky after senseless teasing from the two girls, muttering something about annoying women as he left the house.

Her worries about her furniture were soon forgotten though as she struggled to try and free herself from Kurama's whip. She'd tried everything, even going as far as tapping directly into her thunder powers, her body glowing blue for a moment before she gave up, looking at the kitsune youkai wearily.

Kurama smiled and finally released her from her bonds. "You're very good, Tara," he sat down in the shade of one of the large oaks in her garden. "But you have to be quicker, alright?"

She nodded and smiled back at him, sitting down beside him and relaxing. The grass was still damp against her skin, helping her relaxe after using her powers to such an extent.

Hiei had been silently sitting in the tree, following the progress of the training with mild interest. Although he would never admit it, he was impressed by the young thunder demon. Although she had been close to collapse only that morning, she had recovered the majority of her demon energy in only a few hours. Then again, she was a thunder demon after all...


	4. Melting Two Closed Hearts

ShadowDove87: I realise this chapter took a little longer to bring out than the last few…I was lazy! Bite me:P Anyway, I hope you enjoy it. And please review to let us know what you think! 

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**A Battle with Memories**

**Chapter 4 – Melting Two Close Hearts**

**Authors: Qiruama and ShadowDove87**

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Several hours later, after a well deserved cat nap, Soraya wandered down the stairs, still yawning. Reaching the landing, she looked about her. As far as she could tell, no one was there. Her ears twitched to catch the slightest sound, her nose still ambushed by the new scents of the human world. It was difficult for her to sense anyone. "Where…where is everyone…?" gradually, a sensation of loneliness took grip of her body and she felt the world grow around her.

Kuwabara had left the house only a few minutes earlier, muttering something about his sister yelling at him to clean his room. The other three sat outside under the shade of a tall oak. Tara glanced at the two demons sitting around her. She barely knew them, so, she figured, the next natural step would be to learn about her new team-mates. Kurama told her the story of how he and Hiei first met Yusuke and Kuwabara and about the sentence the two demons served in NingenKai. She was not surprised to hear Hiei declaring stubbornly that he would return to the MaKai once this punishment, which he claimed was only wasting his time, was lifted. Kurama, on the other hand, intended to remain in his human body and take care of his mother. That had come to her as a surprise.

As if on cue, a small, black kitten with one white patch around it's left eye and a streak of silver along its tail, padded carefully out into the open. The fire demon raised an eyebrow when he recognised the brown eyes of the neko youkai.

Weak, he knew well enough that cat demons only returned to their kitten form as a defensive measure when they were not yet confident enough to rely on themselves. He watched as she stumbled through the grass and towards Tara, looking up at her with big eyes, meowing up at her longingly.

The thunder demon smiled, reaching out and scratching her behind the ears. She knew this was no household cat, there was something different about her. "Well hallo to you…"

Kurama soon came to the same conclusion as the fire demon. Brushing his fingers along the creature's back, he smiled at her, reminding her that she wasn't alone. Looking relieved, the cat jumped onto Tara's shoulder. Living in the human world for so long had allowed her only a limited knowledge of the Makai. She had yet to learn about the demons she should have grown up with. She allowed the neko youkai to curl up in the safety of her raven locks. Hiei, unlike the other two, refused to understand how a demon could regard herself as a fighter if she reverted to something like that when there was no danger.

Soraya ignored the disapproving stare boring into her back, instead, she hesitantly toppled out of Tara's hair and eyed a strand lying across her face. She sneezed when it tickled her nose and meowed again as she bat at it. Tara laughed and reached up to pet the playful creature, smiling when Soraya licked the palm of her hand. Although it was sweet, Kurama knew Hiei had a point. It was not wise to be so carefree, not when they could be attacked any time.

He slowly got to his feet, responding to the questioning looks with a comforting smile. "I'll go get Yusuke and Kuwabara, I don't think it's a good idea for us to split up,"

Soraya hopped off her perch and watched the yoko go. Although he was a canine, the presence of the animal youkai comforted her. She looked after him for a few moments before a bright, yellow butterfly fluttered above her head, just out of her reach.

Within the next hour, the kitsune had returned with the two humans. Kuwabara greeted them cheerfully, face lighting up when he saw Soraya playing in Tara's lap.

"Kitty!"

Hearing the rasping coo, Soraya panicked again and jumped back onto the thunder demon's shoulder. She hid within the safety of her tresses again, only the slitted, brown eyes still visible.

Tara stared at Kuwabara a moment before laughing. "Don't scare her like that you idiot,"

Yusuke stood behind the tall boy, snickering when he caught sight of the pout on the long face. "So there's actually a cat that _is_ scared of you, huh?"

"But…but I want the kitty," Kuwabara plopped himself down across from Tara and stared intently at the kitten perched safely on her shoulder.

Hiei only rolled his eyes, sitting off to the side, making a point of keeping himself out of such affairs. "She's not coming out for you idiot,"

Tara shook her head and slowly got to her feet. The venomous glares passing between the two men reminded her that she needed to be elsewhere. Gently prying the hissing kitten from her hair, she handed the delicate creature to Kurama, instructing the furball to keep her fangs well away from the redhead. Watching her go, Soraya slowly turned her attention to the brilliant, green eyes, which were regarding her kindly. She meowed happily before dodging into the safety of the boy's thick hair, purring as she rubbed her head against his cheek.

Yusuke raised an eyebrow at the cat. "What's with him?"

"Her," Kurama corrected as he sat down against the tree that Tara had vacated. "It's Soraya," he explained as he pulled her out of his hair, holding her in his hands. Soraya turned a few circles in the flat of his palm before proceeding to lick his fingers. He laughed when she continued to tickle him. She finally stopped and turned to face him, her tail swishing back and forth expectantly, mewing when he finally understood. She was hungry.

Coming down the stairs and running a towel through her still wet hair, Tara felt a nice mixture of relaxed and rather sluggish. She'd forgotten what a comforting bath could do after a long, hard training session. She smiled when she saw Kurama and Soraya in the kitchen. The neko youkai, now in her demon form again, returned the greeting, sighing when she heard Yusuke yelling outside.

"You fucking asshole! Come here and let me give you back your spider, dammit!"

Kuwabara was running around the yard for dear life, doing everything he could do stay out of the spirit detective's reach. He should have known it was a bad idea to drop one of those hairy creatures down Yusuke's shirt.

Tara shook her head, deciding it would be safer to stay well away from them as she abandoned her towel in the laundry bin and jumped up into the trees, landing on a branch near Hiei. "This is better…" she glanced over to the fire demon, offering him a disarming smile. "What are you doing up here?"

"Avoiding the two idiots," Hiei stated nonchalantly, watching as the two humans chased each other around below.

After a few moments of silence Tara looked back, raising an eyebrow when a rather annoyed Soraya stepped into the sunshine. She couldn't help but laugh. Both boys were now strung up by two kunai each, waving their arms and legs frantically as they tried to free themselves from the trunk of the tree.

"If you both keep quiet for five minutes, I'll let you down," Soraya stated curtly, returning her remaining kunai to its pouch at her waist. She promptly turned on her heals, her tail swishing almost violently in irritation. Kurama's laughter could be heard from the kitchen.

Yusuke slowly lifted his head to look at the kunai that had caught the shoulder of his green blazer, not having noticed how close the knife had landed to his head. It was a good thing that Soraya could aim, he decided, that thing could put your eye out!

The peace was not long lasting. Not two minutes after Soraya had issued her threat, the neko youkai had to abandon her dinner yet again. Apparently hanging to a tree wasn't going to stop the two Ningen from squabbling. She was about to open her mouth and yell for them to shut up before she _did_ poke their eyes out, when a portal suddenly appeared to her left.

Kurama stood at her side, having come out to see whether Yusuke's frantic and enraged cursing had any substance. A fist colliding with his left cheek was not what he'd expected.

"This will teach you!" the now closed portal found Kurama sitting at Soraya's feet. Above him, eyes ablaze, stood a slender, tanned boy with a shot of blonde hair, one arm still extended after having landed the blow. The impact still thundered in their ears even after they realised what had happened.

Soraya barely paid the boy any attention, falling to her knees, her immediate focus was the redhead and his bleeding nose. Tara, on the other hand, could not tear her eyes away from the strange newcomer.

"What the hell are you doing in my garden?!" although quaking with danger, her voice woke the others from a dazed dream. Yusuke and Kuwabara began flailing again, with more vigour this time.

"Hey!! HEEEEY!!! Let me DOWN!!!" he continue cursing the cat's name in vain. It was as if she couldn't hear him.

Slowly lowering his fist, sapphire eyes reflecting complete and utter loss, the boy wobbled on his feet. He reached out for the wall and stabled himself before focusing on his surroundings. "And where d'hell am I?" the sleeves of his white shirt had been torn off, revealing two, muscular arms, covered in an array of blue and purple blemishes. When hearing Tara his body began to shake. "I…I don't know…the last thing I remember, I was fighting a guy and then…" his voice trailed off. His eyes were met by a pair of blood red orbs. The anger flaring off the smaller demon almost freezing the newcomer's blood.

Hiei had no time to drill the stranger with questions, for the blonde suddenly disappeared from the tip of his sword. A soft thump and Tara's scream, drew all eyes to yet another portal that had opened in the centre of the garden. A green, scaly arm, black claws tinted with the red of blood, lay only inches from the demoness.

Quickly dropping his tattered weapon, he turned to the smaller girl, relieved when he saw she was unharmed. "You ok?" thin lips parted in a smile when he saw her nod, offering her a callused hand. "Let me help you,"

"SORAYA!!! LET ME DOWN!!" Yusuke's volume had risen another notch. Sighing, the neko youkai turned away from her patient and took her kunai, muttering something about five minutes as both humans landed unceremoniously on the ground.

Hiei's sword was at the blonde's throat the moment he'd let go of Tara's hand. He hated the way he smelled, of waste and rotting flesh and dried blood. He'd made a point of not trusting anybody, and he trusted this one even less.

Feeling the cold metal press against his throat, the demon fell back in surprise. Waving his hands in front of his face, he managed to squeak his name and reassure the glaring fire demon that he meant no harm.

Soraya had gone back inside with Kurama. The kitsune youkai was still rather dazed and dripping blood on his shirt. With a sigh, Tara suggested that they go back inside as well before the were drenched by the second onslaught of rain.

"Hiei, Alouka, both of you come in too," waiting patiently at the door, she watched the fire demon slowly sheath his sword and walk back inside, clearly upset with the idea of Tara taking charge, not hesitating to confirm her suspicions when he glared at her in passing. The blonde, Alouka, scrambled to his feet and followed the others into the warm living room, keeping a safe distance from the black clad demon.

"Why did you attack us?"

Tara sighed when she saw the reaction Yusuke's firm words on Alouka. Shaking her head, she tried again. "Where did you say you were from?"

Looking down a little, the sopping demon confirmed their speculations. He was from the MaKai. He had only recently escaped from prison. Those words accompanied by such a meek voice, caused Hiei's blood to boil. Now they had a convict in their midst. Hurrying on, Alouka explained that he had only been locked up to spare his younger brother from a cruel fate. Slowly raising his head, he was surprised when Kurama, now standing in the doorway with the neko youkai a few paces behind him, kindly reassured him that there was no harm done.

Meeting Hiei's gaze, Kurama's own eyes betrayed none of the doubt he felt towards the boy. He was with them now, so there wasn't much he could do. Not when he was under their constant watch.

"I…I don't even know who you guys are…" the smile had returned to his lips. Apart from the small demon, they seemed to believe him.

"Oh, right. I'm Yusuke. This moron is Kuwabara, the red head is Kurama, that's Tara, the chic with the tail's Soraya and the short guy is Hiei," he didn't even flinch when the ruby orbs focused on him, waving the warning aside without so much as a flick of his wrists.

So there was yet another stranger disrupting her home. Shaking her head, Tara pushed herself back to her feet. "Come on Hiei, let me show you to your room,"

Kuwabara scratched his head, watching Hiei follow her with a bewildered look. "He's…staying…?"

Soraya only shrugged, stepping past Kurama and into the living room. "I guess she invited him while the two of you were playing tag, eh detective?" the words left her lips before she could stop them.

With a sigh, Kurama placed a restraining hand on the cat's head. He hadn't intended to reveal so much to the newcomers, but, there wasn't anything he could do now. Sitting the smaller boy on the couch, he explained their situation to him, leaving out anything Alouka didn't need to know. They would have to be especially wary of him now. He could only hope that the others would see as much.

After dinner, Soraya had discovered the magic of television. Although the perplexed look on her face showed that she could make no sense of the cartoons. While Yusuke and Kuwabara were enthralled by the road runner, claiming the coyote was, in fact, a genius, Soraya only continued to stare blankly at the flickering screen. Humans would always be a mystery to her.

Alouka sat on the couch, the comforting warmth of a blanket wrapped around his thin frame. He was happily chattering away to Kurama, glad to have someone who would listen to him at last. Hiei, on the other hand, was slowly growing wary. Sitting on the windowsill and staring out into the darkness, the rain pattering against the glass, he found himself wondering what in the world he was doing in that house with these people. Tara noticed his unrest, quickly stepping in before the fire demon decided against staying inside and running off to who-knows-where.

"Hey guys, do you want to do anything tonight?"

Soraya's ears perked up, staring up at Tara from where she sat, curled up in the ground with the other two boys. "Something fun?" the cartoons where getting very old, very fast.

Tara thought a moment before nodding. "Yeah, we could rent a movie or something. Make some popcorn, play truth or dare," the screen flickered out and she was met by a pair of grinning faces.

"Now you're talking!" Yusuke cheered. The cartoon had been a rerun anyway, and watching the coyote fall down the same cliff over and over again was losing its charm.

Tara laughed, giving into their relentless pleas and agreeing to play truth or dare and, to Kuwabara's excitement, spin the bottle, after the movie and popcorn. Turning to leave the room, she grabbed Hiei and dragged him out into the abandoned hallway. She stopped, turning to him and answering his cold question with a smile. "I thought you'd want an excuse to get out of there,"

She left Hiei in the small store room to search through her vast collection of movies, drawing herself back into the kitchen, rummaging through various cupboards until she finally found what she was looking for. Popping the popcorn into the microwave, she timed the beeps of the kitchen appliance to the downbeat of the song she had started humming.

Kuwabara slowly turned to look towards the kitchen when he heard the cheery tune. He was at a loss for words. Tara had struck him as a demure girl up until that point. Yusuke furrowed his brow, his expression mirroring his friend's.

Soraya had moved to the safety of the couch, trying to put as much distance between herself and the two humans as possible while they had explained what was involved in both truth or dare and spin the bottle. Looking up, a soft smile graced her lips, Tara's tune calming her a little. "She seems happy,"

"Are you sure she's not high or anything…?" Yusuke kept his eyes locked on the kitchen door doubtfully, even though it had been a rhetorical question. He knew well enough that women were moody and unpredictable creatures. Besides, a happy Tara was much better than the scary bitch he'd been dealing with thus far.

Soraya only rolled her eyes as the kitchen door swung open. "Oh god…shut up…"

Tara stood in the doorway, hands on her hips, a buttery scent drifting into the living room, accompanied by the familiar popping. "Geez, I can't even be happy in my own house anymore?""

Kuwabara crossed his arms, glaring into the back of Yusuke's head. "Great going Urameshi! Now she's not going to let us have any popcorn…!"

Looking over the assembled group, Alouka couldn't help but laugh. Sweatdropping and scratching his head in embarrassment when they turned to look at him. "Sorry, but you guys are just like one big family," four pairs of eyes looked at each other before looking back at the blonde, chorusing a protesting "I'm not related to him/her!", pointing in every which way. Kurama only shook his head, smiling as he looked up from the book he'd pulled out a while ago, almost glad he hadn't been included in Alouka's declaration.

Shaking her head, Tara returned to the kitchen just as Hiei sauntered into the living room, looking oddly sombre with a DVD in his hand. His lips slowly turned up in a smirk when he was met by their questioning gazes, reading out the title of the movie.

Soraya only looked puzzled, more so when she saw the shudder and heard the groans of the others. Only Alouka shared her confusion. The fire demon made his way to the television, pushing the movie into the DVD player. When he straightened up again, he found Tara standing amongst them, three large bowls of popcorn in her arms.

He answered her questioning gaze with two words. "The Grudge,"

Two agonising hours later, Hiei turned the living room lights back on, the credits of the muted film scrolling up the screen. Yusuke sat on the floor, cowered against the foot of the couch, hands covering his face. Tara had chosen the end of the couch as her haven, mimicking Yusuke, albeit with a pillow. Kurama and Soraya, the other two occupants of the three-man couch, were staring speechlessly at the screen, the latter wishing she could disappear behind her tail. Alouka and Hiei were the only ones who seemed unmoved by the horrors that had been unveiled to them, Kuwabara a shaking mass in the middle of the floor.

"And I thought you were cool and tough…you guys are just a bunch of chickens!" Alouka laughed, having taken the floor with the two humans. He toppled over when Tara's pillow smacked against the side of his head.

"Oh shut up!"

Yusuke, finally managing to tear his eyes off the now fizzing screen, quickly turned to look over his shoulder at Tara. "Should we play now…?" anything to get his mind off it.

Retrieving her pillow from a laughing Alouka, Tara nodded. "Alright…spin the bottle?" Kuwabara's enthusiastic applause only made her shake her head. "Ok, ok…I'll go get the bottle," shaking the stiffness out of her legs she slowly made her way across the oak floor, pausing when she opened the door, blinking into the darkness that lay ahead of her. "Umm…Yusuke? You wanted to get something to drink…right?"

Yusuke raised an eyebrow, feeling even more confused when he saw the pleading look in her eyes. "Yeah, I guess…" walking to her, he stopped, one foot in the kitchen. "The…the light's not on!"

"I know! Turn it on!"

"Why me?!"

The remainder of the group, having temporarily forgotten their own fear of the dark, brought on the by the movie, was watching them in amusement. Kuwabara got to his feet after a moment, puffing out his chest. His overconfident grin was almost blinding and Hiei wanted to do nothing more than throw the oversized human out the window.

"I'll come and protect you both!" he bellowed in, what he thought was, a heroic voice. Marching over to the open door, he stopped short of the kitchen. "Umm…" blanching at the darkness, he slowly turned to the look at the other two. "Do I have to go any further?"

Tara groaned. "Yeah, to the end of the room! The light switch is over by the fridge!"

"I'm not taking another step!" he bellowed again, although this time he sounded more like a mouse with a megaphone than the idiot he had resembled before.

Soraya smirked, leaning over the armrest of the couch. As long as she was on this end of the room, where it was bright, she was safe. "Oh and you were acting so brave a second ago…"

With a disappointed sigh, Hiei eased himself off the windowsill. Looking at the three disapprovingly he disappeared, the kitchen lit with an eerie, iridescent glow a moment later. The fire demon stepped out from behind a row up cupboards, walking past them without a second look.

Quickly retrieving the bottle, Tara sat down in a circle with the others. Placing the bottle in the middle, she was pleased to note that everyone was taking part. Kuwabara, who had his heart set on going first, gleefully tapping the neck of the empty beer bottle, watching it spin, almost giddy with excitement. His face promptly fell when he saw that the mouth of the bottle, which he had placed so much trust in, was pointing at the over-gelled detective. Yusuke's luck on his turn wasn't any better when he found himself staring at Hiei in horror. He wasn't sure which was worse, watching that movie, or having to kiss the fire demon.

Alouka sat between Soraya and Kurama who he had warmed up to rather quickly in the last few hours. He had no idea humans could be so stupid and yet so simple. Not that he was about to voice his opinion. Gaining their trust had been a lot of work and he knew he still had a long way to go. His smile soon faded when he realised that the bottle was most definitely pointing at him. He was only glad that Hiei had teleported. It helped take the edge off the laughter around him. The fun had been leeched out of the game with the dry peck of Hiei's kiss, up until he realised that he would now be kissing the blushing neko youkai to his right.

Soraya squeaked a little when she realised what had happened. Worse than the anticipation of Alouka's kiss, she worried over who the bottle would point her to. Please not Kuwabara…anyone but Kuwabara! Hiei had been right earlier, in saying that she was more frightened of kissing the squint eyed human then she was of the movie. Although, she did have to give him credit, he had to put up with a lot being the group's punching bag and he was holding up impressively well under the pressure. To her relief, she found the bottle point to Yusuke, although the leer wasn't helping matters much.

After a few more rounds, the group decided to give the bottle one last spin. As of then, Kurama, Alouka and Yusuke had been the only ones lucky enough to kiss a girl, although each had to pay the price of kissing a very irritated fire demon. Hiei was more than relieved when, after playing with the damn bottle for a half hour, Tara announced that Hiei would be the last to spin. Ignoring Kuwabara's whines about not having kissed a girl, worse yet that Tara and Soraya hadn't kissed, he was left agape when the final spin rested on Tara. Clearing his throat uncomfortably, he slowly turned to look at the, now blushing, thunder demon. He slowly eased himself up from the floor and took the few steps to her, wishing all the eyes would stop following him. Leaning down he brushed his lips quickly over hers, stepping back and sitting down. The rest of the team was left wondering why he hadn't teleported to her like with the others.

Tara blinked, not sure what to make of it. It was just a game and the kiss had been short, but…sweet. As if Hiei had taken care, even in his embarrassment. Her eyes weren't playing tricks on her, he really was blushing.

No one else seemed to notice the change in Hiei, save for Alouka who was watching him curiously. All eyes were on Yusuke who was hooting with laughter.

"Too bad, huh Kuwabara? The only guy who didn't get the chance to kiss a girl!"

Kuwabara crossed his arms, narrowing his eyes as he watched the green clad teenager rolling on the floor. The worst thing was that he hadn't had the chance to see the girls kiss. Where was the girl on girl action???

Tara plucked the bottle from the floor, putting it off to the side on the coffee table and out of harms way. "Are we still going to play truth or dare…?" her senses were still rather frayed from Hiei's kiss, telling herself repeatedly that it had meant nothing.

Sitting up, completely ignoring the glare from his left, Yusuke grinned at the small demon who was still trying to avoid everyone's gazes. "Ok, I'll start this game!"

"What? No! I want to!"

Soraya shook her head, sighing a little as she leaned back against the couch behind her. "You started last time, let Yusuke have a go,"

"Geez, just like babies," Tara didn't admit it, but the look Yusuke was giving the fire demon wasn't comforting. She never liked the way the detective thought, especially when the rusted wheels inside his head started turning.

The comment went unheard, Yusuke's eyes locked were on Hiei's. "Truth or dare?"

Uttering a small grunt of annoyance, ruby eyes met chocolate brown. "Dare,"

The detective's smirk could only be described as victorious. "I was hoping you'd choose that…You see, I know you're going to sleep here, but Al needs a room too, right?" all eyes turned to Alouka, who couldn't understand what this dare had to do with him. "And with Soraya taking the only other free room, there won't be enough for all four of you, and Hiei…your bed is king size,"

Slowly unfolding himself from his defensive position, the forbidden child's expression darkened. If Yusuke was about to suggest what he feared, then the human was treading on very dangerous soil.

He was either blissfully unaware of the blood lust emitting from the other side of the room, or he was suicidal, but the look of hatred that flashed through Hiei's eyes remained unnoticed by the teen. "So, your dare, is to share a bed…with Tara…all night."

The room went quiet. Slowly turning to look at the koorime, Tara could almost feel his blood boiling. Slowly closing her eyes she fought to ignore Kuwabara's coos. She was going to die in her sleep, wasn't she?

The remainder of the game went by without much result. A few embarrassing stories and blushing faces here and there, but nothing of real substance. Even Alouka was getting bored. After hearing about this game he thought it would be the perfect opportunity to discovery some of their greatest secrets, perhaps uncover hidden truths, but this was only a child's game and, in the hands of children, it could do no harm. Then again, not all in the room were but children.

"Yusuke, truth or dare?"

Tilting his head in the neko youkai's direction with a sigh, he chose the latter. Even he was starting to bore of this game. He had come to the conclusion that he was the only one who had come up with even a half decent dare.

Brown, glinting almost golden in the dim, living room light, eyes flashed almost dangerously. "Good. I've heard about all these exchanges going on between you and this…Keiko. Yusuke, I dare you to tell her how you really feel,"

Staring at her, he felt his blood run cold, but only for a second. The tired smirk soon returned to him and he shook his head. "She's not here, is she?"

The neko's face fell. She hadn't thought that through very well, had she. Of course, even demons have guardian angels, and Tara was one of them.

"Why not call her? Then we can all hear it!"

The smirk evolved to a frown, glaring at Tara he slowly got to his feet. He was a man. There was no way he would refuse a dare, even if it was something so stupid. Walking into the kitchen to get the cordless phone, he heard the muffled voices of those in the living room trying to explain to Soraya and Alouka how to make a call and what a phone was.

"Call her?"

Kuwabara nodded, grinning at the violet tressed girl. "With a phone!"

Her face fell as Alouka's brows furrowed in confusion. "That doesn't help,"

He stared at the phone for a while. It was just a stupid dare, it's not like it meant anything right? How he really felt about her…Wandering back into the living room, the phone in his hand, he felt numb for the first time in his life. Not annoyed, embarrassed or angry. Just numb. Leaning against the wall near the kitchen door, fingers, that weren't his own, slowly dialled her number. The watchful eyes all centred on him didn't make it any easier, and it certainly didn't help that he knew her number off by heart.

"Hey, Keiko? Yeah…it's Yuske," he sighed when Tara urged him on. They should give him some goddamn time! "Shut up! No, not you Keiko! Umm," he ran his free hand through his hair. All this pausing an hesitating was not like him. Keiko said as much. "I…I called to tell you that…I really care about you, you know. I…well I…I kinda love you…" right, now would be a good time for someone to bash his head into the nearest brick wall. "No I'm not drunk dammit! I mean it, ok? I…really love you…" he glared at Kuwabara when the squinted boy shouted for him to speak up. "I have to go…" he ignored her shaking voice on the other end, feeling relieved that she hadn't rejected him. "I'll see you soon," without waiting for her reply he hung up, glaring at the glowing faces. "There. Done. Happy?"

"Yep! And you are too! I can tell!" Tara giggled, punching her classmate's shoulder.

Alouka's thoughts were elsewhere. So…he loves a girl named Keiko huh? he couldn't help but smirk inwardly. Finally he had something to work with. Maybe all this 'studying' was going to pay off after all. He'd always been smarter than that idiot Hiko.

After giving Kuwabara a well-deserved noogie, Yusuke grinned when Tara announced that it was about time they turned in for the night. Following the two, small demons up the stairs, he made a point of continuously reminding them of Hiei's dare. Stepping into the large room that had been her parents, Tara flinched when she heard Hiei slam the door. When she turned around, she found the fire demon leaning against it, keeping the others from getting in.

Sitting down on the bed, the thunder demon carefully smoothed out the wrinkled sheets. She hadn't slept in this room since shortly after they moved to the NingenKai. Just sitting on the cream blanket brought back painful memories. Turning her attention away from the room itself, she stared at her reflection in the mirrors that lined the far wall. She regretted that after a moment as well.

Raising an eyebrow, the fire demon easily sensed her fear, which he could not understand. It was just her reflection after all. A small smirk formed on his lips when he remembered the movie. "Still?"

"Oh shut up!"

"What…if the lights were to go out?"

Tara's face paled as her eyes searched his pallid face pleadingly. The room went dark. "Hiei! Stop fooling around, you baka. This isn't funny!"

"Isn't it?"

"No, it's not! Turn the light on again…please?"

His hand remained on the light switch, red eyes glowing eerily in the dark. Hearing her silent pleas, he frowned and flicked the light back on. He was surprised to find the look of horror engraved on the girl's face. The last time he had seen anyone look at him like that, was shortly before he had taken their life, but this was all induced by a stupid movie. Humans lived a sheltered life and it appeared that this thunder demon had been raised no differently. An odd sensation dawned on him as he continued to stare at her, watching the colour slowly return to her pale cheeks. Something…protective.

Quickly pushing the disturbing thought aside, he walked over to the bed and sat down on the other side. There was no way he could put his little sister and this girl on the same level. They were too different and yet…they were much the same. A low growl emitted from his throat as he lay down on the bed. The slight shift in the mattress indicated Tara had done the same, but the room remained bright. He was going to have to satisfy himself with sleeping with the light on after all. How bothersome.


End file.
